Future Paramedic Education/Training: Boston or New York

[EMSLife32]

Hey everyone, my name is Nicole. I'm 22 and currently an EMT Basic student in South Windsor, CT (6 month program). I started classes in January (yup, I'm a newbie) and I absolutely adore everything about EMS so far. I've been keeping up with my studies religiously (workbook/reading), and I do a lot of research outside of the classroom regularly just to expand on everything I've learned in class.

I know it's a long way off, but I've been starting to think long-term about potential career options in Emergency Medicine and I'm considering getting my Paramedic one day after earning my Bachelor's degree (hopefully in Nursing, I'm applying for Fall '12). In the meantime, I do plan on becoming state and nationally certified as an EMT in Connecticut while I finish up my Associate’s degree, and my goal is to finish up my last two years of college in a city out-of-state (for example Boston and New York are two of my choices so far).


Some questions I have are:

1. Is there an ideal amount of time (street experience-wise) to have as an EMT before I should start considering the Paramedic route?

2. What is working in a big city REALLY like and are there certain personality traits to possess?

3. Is anyone familiar with the out-of-state reciprocity process or dual-certification (being certified in two states at the same time)?

4. I could always just search online, but I’d rather get some real answers from real EMTs/Ps out there – any Paramedic program recommendations in Boston or New York worth looking into?

Any information, advice, or comments would be GREATLY appreciated. I'm just curious, and trying to get a feel for what’s out there. I really enjoy new places/experiences and new people, as well as learning in general, so I’m sure I’ll be happy wherever I end up.

Thank you so much in advance for taking the time to read (and hopefully!) respond to at least one of the questions from my post

 

[Meursault]

1. Some paramedic programs do require experience or certification as an EMT for admission. Boston-area examples include Northeastern (6 months full-time and valid cert) and Mass Bay Community College (valid cert). There's no consensus as to whether experience beyond that is helpful, but a lot of people argue that you'll get all the experience you need to be a medic as an intern and there's little sense in putting off your education in order to work.

2. At least in Boston, a lot of the specifics of your work environment depend on the company (and it will be a private company) you work for. There are some constants: you won't be paid particularly well, you'll be on the road for most or all of your shift, you'll have to contend with traffic and learn the area well, you'll get to visit a lot of amazing hospitals with interesting patients and technologies, and you and your coworkers will be somewhat expendable. As a paramedic, you will be paid somewhat more reasonably, have more job and shift options, and see only the dialysis patients that actually need medical attention.
Desirable qualities include a deep reserve of patience, a flexible sleep schedule, and experience driving ambulance-sized vehicles. The experience should include driving through narrow streets, around sharp corners, in reverse through narrow streets and around sharp corners, in winter weather, and around vehicles driven by people with no situational awareness and utter disregard for their own safety and that of others. Don't worry; if you don't have the driving experience, you'll get it.

3. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=MA+OEMS+reciprocity
(there are some things for which soliciting community advice is great, like which paramedic program to choose. Simple factual questions are not among those things.)

4. (still Boston-centric) I can't suggest any to look into, but from what I've heard about EMS Academy from their paramedic students, and from my experience with them, I would suggest avoiding their program.

 

[dpopkin]

i went to ems academy and there basic program is good and i am taking there medic program in the fall and half of the medic programs in the south shore area sucks
thats my two cents

 

[46Young]

I don't know how things work up in Boston, but I'd recommend doing the paramedic program in NYC. I've been in different parts of the country, and I've seen different systems. Many systems have their medic units run everything. In NYC, the medics don't get jobs such as MVA's, injuries, sick jobs, abd pain, seizures, EDP's, the intox, or a diabetic emergency w/o AMS. As a medic student in NYC, you're only running arrests, diff breathers, the cardiac condion, stat ep, the unconscious, the inbleed, and that's about it. Like any job, the dispatch info can be less than accurate, but it was accurate enough of the time to provide a steep learning curve. Matter of fact, in NY, you become a medic to do more for your pt, for the money, for the easier time with hiring and OT, and to not have to do all the low priority, mundane, oftentimes "BS" jobs, for lack of a better term. The only MVA's and injuries I worked were traumatic arrests, stabbings, shots, and legit multi-traumas.

In depts that have their medics running everything, you have to get through a bunch of "vomit" calls (vitals, O2, monitor, etc) to get to just one pt that needs timely interventions. IMO, that takes away all the benefit of working a busy ghetto. In NYC, you're getting all the diabetics, CHF'ers, COPD, good traumas, MI's and such, since the poor generally don't take good care of themselves, statistically speaking. In other depts, you'll have to run a lot of non-acute taxi ride calls in between a few good ones, and that wastes your time as a student. Would you rather run a few hundred good jobs during your internship, or just 20 or 30?

I did the program at NY Methodist, in Brooklyn. It's accredited, and I felt it was decent. I recommend getting A&P and pharm prior to entry, as they just do an in house version. Other than that, I found the instruction adequate. They have ALS buses from NY Presbyterian, Jamaica Hospital, and Transcare.

Stonybrook out on Long Island is a good, militant program. LaGuardia CC is also good, and can offer you a degree.